“I see ‘Star Wars’ as taking all the issues that religion represents and trying to distill them down into a more modern and easily accessible construct – that there is a greater mystery out there,” he says.

“I remember when I was 10 years old, I asked my mother: ‘If there’s only one God, why are there so many religions?’ I’ve been pondering that question ever since.

“And the conclusion I’ve reached is that all the religions are true.”

Does Lucas believe in a higher being?

“I think there is a God. No question. What that God is or what we know about that God, I’m not sure,” he says.

Lucas also says that he’s tried to keep a tight lid on the plot of the new film because he doesn’t want audiences to go into theaters knowing every twist and turn.

But he laments: “No matter how you do it, you can’t win … Everybody is trying to steal information.

“But if we bring out the ‘Episode 1’ book early, people get upset that we’re giving the story away.”

The new flick – a prequel to the first three “Star Wars” movies – stars Liam Neeson, Ewan McGregor, Natalie Portman and Jake Lloyd.